


Saving the Day

by mcgarrygirl78



Category: Criminal Minds
Genre: Drama, F/M, Humor, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-03-28
Updated: 2013-03-28
Packaged: 2017-12-06 19:41:38
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,890
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/739383
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mcgarrygirl78/pseuds/mcgarrygirl78
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>You didn’t buy a birthday present for someone unless you thought fondly of them though.  Even if that only meant you enjoyed having that person as your friend with benefits.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Saving the Day

**Author's Note:**

> I may be really, really, really starting to like this ship.

He scrolled through the numbers on his cell phone, sliding his fingers across her name when he came to it. The phone rang and rang. It didn’t go straight to voicemail so that was a good thing. That wouldn’t mean that it wouldn’t.

“Hello.” Her voice was muffled.

“Hey, where are you right now?” he asked.

“Face down in a pillow on my bed contemplating quitting everything, moving to Mexico, and living as a beach bum.”

“Your skin is fair. The sun will kill you.”

“OK, contemplating moving to Denver and becoming a ski bum.”

“Do you want to be alone?”

“I'm already alone.” Gina replied.

“Do you want to stay alone?”

“I was thinking about putting on a movie and making some dinner. Its getting late but I have to eat before going to bed.”

“You don’t have to cook anything. I brought one of your favorites.”

“You brought it?” Gina sat up in bed. That took most of what energy she had left. “Where are you?”

“Outside.” Kevin replied.

“It’s raining outside.”

“The correct term would be pouring.”

“Outside where?” she got up and looked out the window. That was it, the energy was gone.

“I’m about eight feet from your apartment.” 

Kevin looked up. When he saw her there he smiled and waved. He was carrying bags.

“What if I wasn’t in the mood for company?” Gina asked.

“I’d grab a cab, go home, and get stuffed on seafood dumplings.”

“There's no way you'd get a cab in Anacostia after dark.”

“So true. OK, I’d walk home and then be too tired to do anything. C'mon, I have food.”

“I’d have to get dressed.”

“No you wouldn’t.” 

“I'm wearing a towel right now, Kevin.”

“I don’t mind at all. But your apartment is a bit drafty sometimes. Did I also mention that I have presents.”

“What have you got presents for?” Gina asked.

“Someone’s birthday is tomorrow.”

She smiled. She didn’t want to but she did. He made her smile. He always made her smile. She hadn't really expected anything. 

That’s not to say that Gina wasn’t going to be disappointed when nothing came. But she kept telling herself this was casual. They'd been seeing each other off and on since May. Now it was January. It was totally casual…Kevin had seen other people and so had she. 

But lately they seemed to just be seeing each other. Maybe that was just her wishful thinking. You didn’t buy a birthday present for someone unless you thought fondly of them though. Even if that only meant you enjoyed having that person as your friend with benefits.

“I’ll come down and let you in.” she said.

“It was the presents, wasn’t it? You can admit it.”

“Goodbye.”

She dropped her towel and went over to the dresser to grab some clothes. Dressed in yoga pants and a Hogwarts tee shirt, Gina left her bedroom. She walked down the hall, through the living room and down the stairs. When she unlocked the door and opened it, Kevin was standing there wearing a smile. She pulled him in and gave him a kiss.

“Happy almost birthday.” He whispered, kissing her again.

“Thanks. I'm starving.”

“I figured. I know work has been busy the past week.”

“Try the past couple of months.”

Gina started walking up the stairs and Kevin followed. She stopped in the middle, turned around, and kissed him again.

“I am glad you're here.”

“So am I.”

“You didn’t have plans for a hot date tonight?” she asked walking again.

“Oh yes I did. And she’s even wearing one of my favorite tee shirts.”

“You're cute.”

“It’s a gift.” Kevin smiled. 

He put his umbrella against the wall by her counter. Then he took off his coat and scarf, placing them on the back of her one of her kitchen chairs. It was a cold night and the rain didn’t help much. Being in her drafty apartment together was better than being in his warm one alone though.

“What is all this?” Gina asked. She leaned against the refrigerator and just looked at him.

“It’s a party. I have food, cake, wine, and presents. You need to get your mind off work. I know one night probably won't be a big deal but I wanted to help.”

“I appreciate it.”

“So, tonight we relax.” He went into her cabinet and grabbed a plate. 

Then he poured the dumplings onto it and grabbed the plastic sauce cups. Grabbing the other small bag, Kevin started walking into the living room. Gina felt she had no choice but to follow. He sure seemed to be comfortable and familiar in her place. They had been there together many times.

In the living room, she turned on the radio and settled on the classical station. This was the music she loved to listen to after long days at Quantico. And there had been some long days lately. Gina had 32 active cases at the moment. 

There was so much forensics she thought her head would spin. Solving these cases what she did all day. If she could bring justice to victims and some semblance of closure to families then it was worth being tired. Of course she couldn’t be too tired since making one mistake could cost her everything.

“Do you want food or presents first?” Kevin asked as he sat down on the couch. He put the plate and the bag on the coffee table.

“Can we do both?” she was sitting on the window sill. “I know you Kevin Lynch; you're a multi-tasker.”

“I can do both.” He picked up the dumpling with one hand and the gift bag with the other. “See? Come and open it.”

Gina sat down next to him on the couch. She picked up a dumpling too. She was starving and had no idea what she was going to make for dinner. Surely there was something in her fridge but it was nice to have something ready made. After enjoying the first of what was sure to be many dumplings, Gina reached into the bag. She came out with a box.

“I'm really sorry for not getting a card. I fooled myself into thinking there would be time.”

“When is there ever time?” she asked.

“I know. So I'm sorry about that.”

“I appreciate the gift; you have nothing to apologize for.” She shook her head.

“Open it before you say you appreciate it.” Kevin said.

“OK.” she smiled again and pulled open the box. Gina didn’t know what to expect, but she liked what she saw. “Oh wow, this is beautiful.”

“Do you really like it?”

“I do.” she picked up the bracelet and looked at it. “I love the color. This is really beautiful, Kevin.”

“It’s called blue lace agate. Wait, I know everything about it. It provides perceptiveness to situations and awakens inherent talents. It also stimulates analytical capabilities and precisions, which is important in your job. It can relieve stress, help you relax, and bring a sense of peacefulness.”

“Wow, that’s a mouthful.”

“There's one more thing.” He said. “It strengthens gracefulness, creativity, sensitivity, and communication.”

“What cereal box did you read that on?” Gina asked giving him the skeptical look.

“These rocks seriously do everything. If you wear it everyday you might just save the world. Generation upon generation will tell the story of how you went from an ordinary, but awesome, girl to triple bonbon badass.”

“That’s an awful lot for a bracelet.”

“I bet that’s what they told Wonder Woman.” Kevin said.

Gina laughed. She leaned her head back on the couch and laughed. Then she pounced on Kevin and kissed him. He wrapped his arms around her.

“I really do love it. Thank you.”

“Happy birthday.” He kissed her again. “Do you want to put it on?”

“Hells yeah…I wanna start saving the world right now. Actually I want to eat right now, and then I can save the world. You wanna come along?”

“I do.” Kevin nodded. 

He took the bracelet from her hand and then took hold of her wrist. Inhaling deeply, Kevin looked at her and exhaled. He smiled but Gina had a strange look on her face.

“What?”

“That’s what I was wondering.” She replied.

“You're beautiful. I don’t know if I tell you enough. I know you're most comfortable in your jeans or yoga pants and your vast array of awesome tee shirts. But you're still beautiful. I mean you're always beautiful. It doesn’t matter what you wear. It has nothing to do with any of that Gina…it’s just you.”

“Thanks.” She looked away from him.

“Look at me.”

Gina looked at him. Kevin leaned and kissed her. He caressed her face and pressed his forehead on hers. She exhaled, wrapping her arms around his neck. She wasn’t going to question it tonight. She wasn’t going to over think and ruin a nice time. 

He bought her food, a lovely present, and her favorite weather was brewing outside. Gina would drag him to bed to have fabulous pre-birthday sex. That would be after she ate all the dumplings. To top the night off she would probably get eight hours of sleep. It was hard to think of too many things better than that. He put the bracelet on and kissed her hand.

“We need to buy a crappy VW love bus that breaks down a lot and hit the road.” Gina said.

She settled on the couch with Kevin’s arm around her. They moved the plate of dumplings into his lap, happily munching.

“We can't save the world in a VW love bus.”

“I'm saving the world…you're driving.”

“Oh if I'm driving then it’s definitely going to be a 1968 Ford Mustang GT in maroon or chrome silver.”

“Good lord, why does every boy have a hard on for Steve McQueen?” Gina asked laughing.

“Um, because he's Steve McQueen, that’s why. Girls have hard ons for…”

“Steve McQueen. And I had a thing for Stefanie Powers as a kid.”

“Me too.” Kevin smiled. “Just one more thing we have in common.”

“Are you gonna stay for the party after dinner?” she asked.

“I’d love to.”

Kevin nodded, relaxing on the couch and holding onto her. He wanted to surprise Gina on her birthday and it looked as if he had. He knew her well; Kevin was sure she wasn’t expecting anything. Her low expectations were a concern of his. Their relationship was fun…he didn’t feel like he had to be on all the time. 

It was also casual and Kevin didn’t know if he should pursue more. She seemed fine with it. He also knew he wasn’t that good at reading women’s thoughts, or anyone’s for that matter. Asking was out of the question. So he just decided he would be there. He would do boyfriend things even if he didn’t quite know if he was her boyfriend. 

If she asked him to stop, he would. If she asked him to stay, he would. And maybe if he was still doing boyfriend things by summer then he would just say he was her boyfriend. The plan seemed a little weird but so far that was all he had. Well he had her and that made him feel pretty good.

***


End file.
